Destiny 2 Ghost Companion (2017) — Hardware Preservation, Reverse Engineering, and Repurposing Project

Hello Bungie Team and Destiny Community,

I'm currently working on a personal hardware preservation and reverse-engineering project involving the original 2017 Destiny 2 Ghost Companion, with the goal of restoring or repurposing its interactive functionality.

Rather than allowing this unique piece of Destiny hardware to become obsolete as its original supporting services age, I'm investigating whether it can be given a second life through a locally hosted controller and, potentially, integration with Bungie's existing API.

Device Information

• Product: Destiny 2 Ghost Companion (2017)

• Model: GS061

• FCC ID: 2ADJY88181D2AG

• Connectivity: 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n)

• Hardware: Integrated speaker, LED illumination, Micro-USB power connection, and wireless networking

Investigation and Testing Completed

So far, I've completed several stages of non-invasive testing and analysis:

1. Network Discovery and Connectivity

Successfully identified the Ghost on my local network and verified that it remains responsive to network requests.

2. Network Protocol Analysis

Captured and analyzed network traffic using Wireshark-compatible packet captures and TCPDump.

Testing revealed that the Ghost establishes an encrypted TLS connection to an Amazon AWS IoT endpoint using TCP port 8883, commonly associated with MQTT over TLS.

Periodic bidirectional communication continues even when the Ghost's surrounding LEDs are inactive.

3. Firmware Update Investigation

Observed the device requesting a firmware version file from an Amazon CloudFront endpoint.

The request currently receives an HTTP 403 AccessDenied response, raising questions about whether the original firmware distribution infrastructure remains available.

4. Device Authentication

Analysis of the TLS handshake revealed that the Ghost presents an AWS IoT client certificate and performs certificate-based authentication.

This suggests that the original architecture relies on authenticated, encrypted device-to-cloud communication.

The actual application messages and device-control commands have not yet been identified.

5. Hardware Documentation

Located and reviewed publicly available FCC documentation, including internal photographs and wireless specifications, to better understand the Ghost's circuit board, wireless module, LEDs, and speaker.

6. Local Controller Development

I've also begun developing a Python-based controller on an Ubuntu Linux system.

The project has successfully established Bungie API authentication and retrieved Destiny character information. The next challenge is determining how that information could be translated into commands understood by the physical Ghost.

What I'm Trying to Accomplish

My long-term objective is to develop a standalone, locally controlled Ghost Companion capable of:

• Controlling its existing LED illumination.

• Playing audio or custom voice responses through its internal speaker.

• Responding to locally generated commands.

• Integrating with Bungie's API to retrieve Guardian and character information.

• Potentially restoring selected interactive behaviors without depending on discontinued cloud services.

Ideally, this would preserve the original hardware rather than replacing its internal electronics unnecessarily.

Where I'm Currently Stuck

Although I've confirmed that the device remains network-connected and communicates with AWS IoT, I haven't yet determined:

1. Whether the original Ghost supports any documented local-control interface.

2. Whether its Micro-USB connection supports data communication or is exclusively for power.

3. Whether firmware images, development documentation, or protocol specifications were ever made publicly available.

4. Whether the LED and speaker functions can be controlled independently of the original cloud infrastructure.

5. Whether a supported recovery, diagnostic, or developer mode exists.

Request to Bungie and the Community

I'm reaching out to ask whether anyone involved with the original Ghost Companion's development, or anyone who has previously investigated this hardware, might be able to provide guidance.

In particular, I'm interested in any publicly shareable information concerning the hardware architecture, firmware availability, supported communication interfaces, or local device-control capabilities.

I'm not seeking access to Bungie's private infrastructure, credentials, or proprietary backend systems. My intention is to explore legitimate, independent ways to preserve and reuse a piece of Destiny hardware that many fans still appreciate.

If anyone has worked on a similar project, successfully disassembled the GS061 model, or discovered a method for controlling its LEDs and speaker, I'd appreciate hearing about your findings.

Thank you for your time, and thank you to the teams who originally brought this Ghost Companion to life.

Very Respectfully

Aaron Irving

Eyes up, Guardian.